MTN Rwandacell Plc has posted a sharp turnaround in its first quarter of 2025, with profit after tax rising by 228.6% year-on-year to Rwf 1.6 billion.
The company attributes this strong result to solid operational execution, increased service revenue, and reduced depreciation costs.
Service revenue surged by 12.3% to Rwf 67.2 billion, underpinned by strong growth in MTN Rwanda’s data and fintech platforms.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) grew by 9.3% to Rwf 26.5 billion, even as the EBITDA margin declined by 1.2 percentage points to 38.9%.
Commenting on the performance, MTN Rwanda Chief Executive Officer Monzer Ali said, “We are encouraged by the recovery of our business during Q1, despite the continued aggressive competitive dynamics in the market, underpinned by solid operational execution and a supportive macroeconomic environment.”
The company’s total subscribers increased by 2.8% year-on-year to 7.6 million. Monthly active Mobile Money (MoMo) users grew by 2.5% to 5.3 million, while active data subscribers declined by 8.2% to 2.3 million.
The decline was attributed to intense competition in data offerings, although total data traffic rose by 33.6%, supporting a 12.2% growth in data revenue.
Capital expenditure (capex) dropped by 22.5% to Rwf 9.9 billion, largely due to the early execution of capex projects in the 2024 base. Excluding leases, capex was down 86.9% to Rwf 1.2 billion.
MTN Rwanda also restated its Q1 2024 financials to align with proper lease accounting under IFRS 16, which impacted depreciation, finance costs, and tax. This restatement revised last year’s profit after tax from a reported Rwf 749 million profit to a Rwf 1.2 billion loss.
In community engagement, the company awarded Rwf 14.5 million to top participants in its “Level Up Your Biz” initiative, now in its fourth year, developed in partnership with Inkomoko to empower MTN agents and small businesses with practical skills for growth.
Looking forward, MTN Rwanda reaffirmed its focus on commercial expansion, digital and financial inclusion, and operational efficiency as part of its Ambition 2025 strategy.
